Weekly Report - 02 April 2026 (WR-26-13)

A Russian tanker carrying some 700,000 barrels of crude oil docked at the port in Matanzas province, Cuba, on 30 March. It provided a temporary lifeline for the island, which had been without oil shipments for three months due to the blockade imposed by the US government [WR-26-12]. It also appeared to represent a softening of the US administration’s approach to Cuba, with President Donald Trump declaring that he had “no problem” with Russia or other countries sending oil to Cuba, potentially opening the door for Mexico to resume oil shipments, which it had halted under US pressure. However, with the White House subsequently indicating that it would evaluate whether such shipments will be permitted on a “case-by-case basis”, it looks like they could be used to ramp up pressure on the Cuban authorities to implement change.

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